[U.S. Midterms D-1] Trump: "If Democrats Win, I'll Be Mr. Veto" - Is He Preparing for Election Defeat?

Final campaign rallies in Iowa and Kansas
Reiterates pledge of "$5,000 per adult"
Signs of a rift within the Democratic Party are a wild card

With the U.S. midterm elections just two days away, Republicans and Democrats are intensifying their last-ditch efforts to secure majority status. As Republicans face growing difficulty holding on to their majorities in Congress, U.S. President Donald Trump has personally campaigned in traditionally Republican strongholds. Democrats, meanwhile, are working to reclaim the majority while trying to contain an internal power struggle.

According to the Financial Times (FT), the Associated Press and other outlets, Trump held his final in-person campaign rallies before the midterms on Sunday in Dubuque, Iowa, and Salina, Kansas. In Dubuque, he reiterated his pledge to give $5,000 to each adult if Republicans take control of both the House and Senate. He also stipulated that the money would have to be spent in the United States. Using the example of a married couple each receiving $5,000, for a total of $10,000, Trump said, "We shouldn't say, 'Now we have $10,000, so let's go spend it in China. Let's go to Japan. Let's go to Korea.'"

U.S. President Donald Trump leaves the stage after delivering a campaign rally speech at Salina Regional Airport in Salina, Kansas, on the 1st (local time). Getty Images-Yonhap News

Iowa is a Republican stronghold where Trump won by a double-digit margin in the 2024 presidential election. Kansas is also traditionally Republican, but Trump has stepped in to campaign there as rising living costs have boosted support for Democrats.

Trump also appears to be preparing for the possibility that Democrats could take control of Congress. In an interview with the New York Post published on Sunday, he said that if Democrats win the midterms, "I will probably be Mr. Veto." He added, "If they send me bills, I will veto them," and said that "after getting vetoed for a month or two, they'll come to negotiate."

Recent forecasts suggest that Democrats could take the Senate as well as the House. Of the Senate's 100 seats, Republicans currently hold 53 and Democrats hold 47.

Signs of divisions within the Democratic Party in the final stretch of the campaign are seen as a wild card. On Sunday, Democratic U.S. Representative Haley Stevens of Michigan formally endorsed Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers. Stevens narrowly lost the Democratic Senate primary in August to progressive candidate Abdul El-Sayed. Stevens later criticized a political ad by an outside group that linked U.S. support for Israel to rising grocery prices and called on El-Sayed to condemn it. When he refused, she turned against him.

Democratic leaders immediately condemned Stevens' unexpected move. Democratic National Committee (DNC) Chair Ken Martin denounced it as "a betrayal of Democratic values." Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer also sought to contain the fallout, saying the party's support for El-Sayed was firm. At Stevens' office, the chief of staff and several aides resigned. In the Michigan race, prompted by Democratic Senator Gary Peters' decision not to seek re-election, El-Sayed is running against Rogers, who has Trump's backing.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.